Question

My son was 8 weeks early, Will this hinder his development?

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I was due on apr. 25 2007, my son was born on feb 28, 2007. I just wanted to know if he was going to bebehind in his development, he is now 6 months old and im afraid of him not catching up...as of now he likes chewing on his hands, he tries to holds the bottle, he like sitting straight up, and of course he recognizes his father and I, and he kinda babbles...well just a little. Is there more that he should be doing? Any input could and would help.
Thank You
Shawna

Mom Answers

Im sure now that your son is a year old, you have noticed how much he has caught up. And by 2 he will have caught up even more. If not, then is the time to be sure he is enrolled in early intervention. My son was 8 weeks early, 3 lbs 13 oz, and spent 6 weeks in the NICU. We started screenings right after he came home and continued them every 2 months then every 4 months. At 2 they noticed some speech delays. At 2 1/2 they had a speech therapist coming to our home. At 3 he started preschool through them, totally free. At 5 1/3(as he says) he still goes to the same preschool and has really excelled. He also receives fine motor therapy there as well. Gross motor and cognitive he has tested above age level, and is right on track for fall Kindergarten.(late fall baby) He is tall and thin for his age, at 3 foot 8 inches and 41 lbs, and still gets really sick when he does get sick. Other than that, its hard to think of him as that tiny very sick baby in the NICU that he was just 5 years ago.

i have a book called Wonder Weeks, which shows you the developments that a child makes throughout the first 2 years of his life. it says that if your child was born 8 weeks early, he should hit his milestones 8 weeks later than most kids. my son was 6.5 weeks early, and i find this to be mostly true. but each kid is so different when they reach milestones, that 1 to 2 months isnt going to make a huge difference in the long run. my son does some things that are ahead of the milestones, and in others, he's about 4 to6 weeks behind the average. they all catch up sooner or later.

My twins were born at 23 weeks. They were delayed hitting early milestones, but now at 6 months old they are crawling, sitting unsupported,and learning to pull themselves up. They were delayed early on because they were in the hospital so long. They weighed 1lb 2oz, and 1lb 6oz at birth. Now they weigh 18lbs and 16lbs. I don't think being early will have any issue on development. But then again every baby is different and will develop at different paces. It may not be the fact it he was early, it may just be the way he is. He will catch up!!! Don't freak out. Don't compare him to anyone elses children. It will only make you feel worse, when infact he is doning what he is suppossed to be doing. Everything will be fine.!!!

My daughter Grace was born 12 weeks early, 2lb 13oz 15 1/4 in long. She was in the NICU for 3 months before she got to come home. She will be 9 months this thursday, and she is doing great. In size she is off the charts for her adjusted age. She is now almost 19lbs and almost 30 inches. She's wearing 9-12 mo clothes. Breast milk fortifies w/formula does wonders! She's also above her age level in many of her milestones, and just a tad behind(although every baby is different) in some others. She doens't hold her bottle yet, but she already grabs things with thumb and forefinger and can pass things intentonally from hand to hand. She's almost sitting up by herself, but she can drink from a cup and eats very well from a spoon. She understand sign language that we've tought her and is started to use the hand gestures.
We have an appt with a physical develpment specialist next week here in Vancouver to evaluate where she's at in her development and to get therapy if needed. Check it out.

Hi, I'm not an expert in this area, but everything I've read suggests that you can't compare your baby developmentally from his birthdate, but you need to from your due date. That way you're doing him justice and allowing him the time he needs to "catch up". On another note, my brother was 3 months early. He is fine developmentally. He was on target with all the other kids by preschool definitely, even size wise. The doctor's told my stepmom that he should be entirely caught up physically and developmentally by second grade, but he was way before that. He is now an athletic middle schooler on the honor roll. If you're baby is already on target, great, but if not, just give him time and help him!

I was born 11 weeks early. the docs told my parents i wouldnt live past 5 years and that if, by some miracle, i did, i'd be mentally retarded and develop slower than my peers but here i am 24 years later in pretty much perfect health, except for slight asthma. i have a beautiful, healthy 9 month old son. so that just goes to show, that with a little faith, anything can happen.

I think the majority of success has to do with how willing parents are to work with their child. My husband's daughter was born 7 1/2 weeks early with 3 holes in her heart, under-developed lungs and a misshapen heart valve. She managed to catch all of her milestones and caught up by the first year. My husband worked VERY hard with his daughter to teach her and help her advance. When him and his wife separated she unfortunately did not receive the education and stimulation she HAD been receiving from my husband and his family (no offense to his ex but she just didn't know how to provide appropriate care) and within a couple of years she was behind again. When my hubby was able to regain some relationship with his daughter at 9 yrs of age she was only at a 5 yr milestone. With his help, education and support she is now 14 yrs old and is generally performing at a 12 yr level. If you are not sure of how to stimulate/help your child seek help!!! It's VERY important to development!!

My daughter was 40 days early (just shy of 8 weeks) and was 5lbs (I have 4 kids,the other were 8lbs3oz,7lbs110z, and 8lbs7oz) First off, my daughter is 23 months old (2 on 4/20/08) I HATE the phrase "adjusted age" I followed that my daughters first year of life, pretty much EXPECTED her to be behind, she has 2 brothers that are older then her, and 1 younger...she is AMAZING, no she didnt do exactly what I wanted her to be doing the minute I wanted her to be doing it (ie crawling, walking, talking...) but guess what -- she does it all and then some. She talks better than any other 2 year old her Dr has ever seen premie and not included, and is an amazing child. Yeah shes short n stocky, but well her Daddy and I arent giant people, she wears a 3T, but the pants are waaaaaay waaaaaaaay to long lol..No worries Shawna dear...or any new Mom to a premie..LOVE THEM, WORK WITH THEM, ENJOY THEM!! Thats why God blessed us with them!!! Most premies catch up by the first year! Hope this helps!

My son was born 4 weeks early, he was very delayed, compared to his peers (my friends kids born within a week of him). We started at 9 months with an evaluation and 10 months with therapy. He was caught up to them by the time he was 17 months. He is now 3 and you would NEVER know he had been delayed at all! Take advantage of the services in your area, that is what they are there for! I can look back now that I have a second child, and confidently say that most kids just do things in their own time!

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